Dallas City Manager Kimberly Tolbert wants the City Council to settle the dispute over plans to redesign the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center and the impact it would have on traffic between Downtown Dallas and Oak Cliff.
The issues are money and time. The quicker, cheaper convention center redesign closes the Jefferson Boulevard and Houston Street Viaducts; the redesign that maintains that access point could cost the city millions of dollars, while it’s already facing a budget shortfall.
Right now, the plan is to reopen the convention center in 2030; any further delay could cost the city $1.4 million per month, according to Visit Dallas, the nonprofit responsible for marketing the city. Oak Cliff council members and residents were vocal about their opposition to the closure of the viaducts.
City Council is expected to take up this issue on Wednesday, June 24th. The convention center has already been delayed twice.
You can read more in-depth reporting from our media partner, The Dallas Morning News.
Dallas leaders are weighing whether to change the height of the new Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, a move that could affect key viaduct connections between downtown and Oak Cliff. Some residents and council members say removing part of the Jefferson Boulevard viaduct without immediate replacement funding could further divide southern Dallas, while city staff warn redesigns could delay the project beyond its planned 2029 opening. NBC 5’s David Goins has more.